


If I Had Written Miraculous Ladybug (Season One)

by WhiteSailboat



Series: If I Had Written Miraculous Ladybug [1]
Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: F/M, Multi, Rewrite, Season/Series 01
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-13
Updated: 2020-10-28
Packaged: 2021-03-08 00:34:16
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 13,341
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26986786
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WhiteSailboat/pseuds/WhiteSailboat
Summary: Just a huge series rewrite with things I personally wanted to see in the show!
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug
Series: If I Had Written Miraculous Ladybug [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1969579
Comments: 6
Kudos: 9





	1. Origins (Part One)

**Author's Note:**

> I've been planning this huge series rewrite since season 3 ended, each chapter will cover one episode. I'll be making a lot of adjustments as I go along, and will explain all I've changed from the canon show in the end notes. I do not intend this fic to disrespect the work of the creators in any way. I do not know anything about producing a tv show, and this fic is for my own enjoyment. Thanks for reading!

“Keep up Dupain-Cheng!”

  
Marinette’s blood was boiling. That was about the fifth time she’d heard Chloé’s screech this morning, and the sound was about as lovely as a cheese grater being dragged over concrete. It was way too early in the day to be hearing this. You’d think with two bakers as parents Marinette would be more of a morning person.

  
It didn’t help that she had already ran two miles that morning, going on a third. There were still bits of frost on the grass, and yet to Marinette it felt like a sticky August afternoon. She couldn’t focus on anything except for the sound of her own heavy breaths and the fact that it was unbearably hot. However, she willed her legs to keep moving to catch up with the rest of the group.

  
She glared at Chloé as she ran, hoping her anger would fuel her ability to run. She barely looked disheveled at all, her blond ponytail bouncing gracefully and cheeks barely flushed pink. How does she manage to do that?

  
She ran for what seemed like forever before she arrived at the door to the gym. Most of the other girls had already finished and were bent over, trying to catch their breath. Chloé seemed barely phased, as if the three-mile run had been some casual morning yoga. Marinette braced herself against the wall next to the door, placing one hand on her knee.

  
“Winded, are you?” Chloé was picking at one of her nails and avoiding eye contact as if Marinette were beneath her notice entirely. “This is what happens when you live at a bakery. Who knows how many sweets you’re sneaking when I can’t see you.”

  
Marinette huffed. She was perfectly fit and healthy, but heaven forbid she didn’t live up to the great expectations of Chloé Bourgeois. She opened her mouth to say something, but Chloé had already walked off to berate some other girl.

  
Marinette turned to the girl beside her, Gina, instead. “Sheesh. Who died and made her football captain?” She laughed softly. Gina just looked at her like she was crazy, which made sense in a way. Gina was two grades younger than Marinette, and Chloé’s naturally kind and amiable personality scared the shit out of most of the younger girls.

  
“I want to see better from you all tomorrow.” Chloé snapped above the panting. “And be back here at three for practice!” The girls all mumbled their agreements, then started dragging their heels back to the locker room.

  
Chloé had been made football captain at the end of the previous school year. The coach was a very hands-off man, so Chloé oversaw everything that didn’t require a teacher’s approval. Marinette had found her unbearable before she had been made captain, but now it was a hundred times worse.

  
She always went home to change and take a shower, as her house was right across the street and she had a good thirty minutes before classes started. She always felt a little embarrassed in front of the students who had arrived early because she was sweaty. Also, her hair was a windblown mess. She walked as quickly as possible to the front door of the bakery, skipping steps as she climbed the stairs to her room. Her parents knew not to greet her before she had showered and watched as she ran by.

  
She walked down again about fifteen minutes later, the bakery was already lively despite how early it was. Her parents were rushing about the store like always, and Marinette slid a scone onto a napkin and sat on a table in the corner. She had a few minutes before school started, and one of her favorite things to do was observe the morning customers. She reached into her bag and pulled out a small sketchbook. She did a quick, very messy sketch of one woman who was wearing a light-yellow dress with a white scarf. She liked to practice drawing people’s outfits and sometimes she got inspiration for her own. It was just a hobby for now, because while Marinette loved fashion the industry was harsh and competitive. She had no desire to try to tackle that challenge.

  
There was a woman with sunglasses and a hat on staring at her from the other side of the café. Who wore sunglasses indoors anyway? She sipped at her coffee and her lips pulled into a tight smile. She turned her head towards the window as if she had seen something interesting. Marinette stared at her for a moment, she made a very pretty portrait. She had just begun to sketch the sunglasses in her sketchbook when the ringing of a bell caught her attention.

  
Shit. Leave it to Marinette to be late to school for the third time this week. She threw her sketchbook into her bag and stuffed the rest of the scone into her mouth as she ran towards the door. She swore she caught a glint of amusement in the eyes behind those sunglasses as she let the door fall behind her.

  
She was halfway up the stairs when the second bell rang, and she sighed in disappointment as she walked all the way to her classroom. Ms. Bustier was in the middle of greeting the class and shook her head with a smile as Marinette walked in.

  
“Late again Dupain-Cheng? I saw you here twenty minutes ago.” Chloé scoffed from the wrong side of the room causing a few of her classmates to giggle. Marinette did a double take. Chloé had always sat on the left side of the class, but now she was on the right. Right in Marinette’s spot. Chloé smirked a little at Marinette’s apparent confusion. “Oh right, we gave away your seat since you weren’t here to stop us.”

  
“What?” Marinette snapped. At the same time Ms. Bustier had called Chloé’s name with that tone of warning reserved for parents and teachers.

  
“Most of the class has changed spots, actually.” Said Ms. Bustier. Marinette noticed that many of her classmates had shifted around a bit. There was an empty seat next to Chloé, and one next to a girl who was new this year (Anna? Anya? Marinette couldn’t remember). “We have a new student transferring in today, so we had to adjust things a bit.”

  
Marinette had noticed there was an empty seat next to Chloé. That was odd. She always sat next to Sabrina, the class president, who was now sitting directly behind her next to Nino. They were practically inseparable.

  
“Hey!” Chloé snapped her fingers, making Marinette remember she was still standing there awkwardly. “Just so you know, this seat isn’t for you.”

  
Marinette shrugged. “I didn’t think it was.” She walked and sat down in the other empty seat and smiled at the girl next to her.

  
“I had to change seats since I’m the only one Adrien knows.” Chloé puffed her chest out a little as she said this.

  
“Adrien?” Marinette asked.

  
“Adrien Agreste, the transfer student, stupid.” She said slowly, “God, don’t you ever use your brain?”

  
“Chloé!” Ms. Bustier snapped. “Don’t talk to your fellow classmates like that.”

  
“Sorry Ms. Bustier,” Chloé said in that sickeningly sweet voice of hers, “Us girls on the football team are just like that, sometimes I forget I’m not on the field.”

  
Ms. Bustier gave a warning glare but seemed to accept the excuse. Marinette grimaced, if she could manage not to insult people on the field, she was sure that Chloé could do it too. Unfortunately, she never put forth the effort. It was probably because she was an evil dictator that enjoyed human suffering. Maybe it was a bit dramatic, but Marinette felt it was somewhat close to the truth.

  
“Speaking of the transfer student,” Ms. Bustier started, “He’s with Mr. Damocles now, and I should go show him to the classroom. Please pull out your assignment from last Friday so we can begin grading it when I return.”

  
As soon as she stopped talking, the classroom returned to its regular chatter. Marinette shuffled around in her bag for the assignment that she had remembered to do for once. She pulled it out and cast a glance towards the girl next to her. She flushed for a moment.

  
“Um, this is kinda embarrassing since you’ve been here for a month now, but I realize I’ve never actually introduced myself.” Marinette shuffled her papers around for a little bit and looked up. “I’m Marinette Dupain-Cheng.”

  
The girl smiled. “No sweat! I’m Alya, and I never introduced myself either, so I guess we’re both to blame.”

  
Marinette laughed, feeling slightly less embarrassed. “I guess I’ve just been caught up with between classes and football practice.”

  
“You’re on the team?” Alya asked, “Isn’t Chloé the captain.”

  
“Unfortunately.” Marinette said in a low voice so Chloé wouldn’t hear. Alya laughed.

  
“That’s gotta be interesting.” She said.

  
Marinette shrugged, “Eh, it gets old after a while. I’ve known Chloé for years. We used to be rivals when we were younger.”

  
“Really?” Alya blinked.

  
“Don’t look so surprised.” Marinette teased. Then in a lower voice she added, “Don’t tell her I said this, but now she’s actually much better than me. However, I’d rather die than let her know I think that.”

  
Alya glanced at Marinette, “Don’t worry, Princess over there already has enough of an ego. Your secret is safe with me.”

  
Marinette barked a laugh and then quickly covered her mouth. Some of the other classmates looked in her direction, and then returned to their conversations. Chloé rolled her eyes.  
“I should’ve introduced myself sooner.” Marinette whispered, “I think we’re going to get along.”

  
“Yeah,” Alya smiled, “I think we will.”

Adrien sat in the principal’s office reading the titles of the books that lined the dusty shelves. His father was in deep conversation with the principal, discussing safety measures and other things. Adrien’s mind was a thousand miles away. He had finally done it! He was going to a real school. It had taken some real effort to convince his father, who was very nervous about the whole thing. If Adrien was being honest with himself, he didn’t really mind his father’s helicopter parenting every now and then. It was one of the only times he felt his father really cared about him.

  
“If there are any problems,” Adrien’s father said, “I want to be informed of them immediately.”

  
“Oh but of course,” Mr. Damocles beamed. “I will do everything in my power to make sure your son is as comfortable as possible.”

  
Adrien only smiled and thanked him politely. Mr. Damocles was using that tone of voice Adrien had heard dozens of times before. It was the voice people used when they wanted something from you, and Adrien had learned to hate it early on in his life. His father had stood and was already walking towards the door. There was a woman with red hair standing there and she smiled at him.

  
“Are you Adrien Agreste?” She asked. “I’m your homeroom teacher, Ms. Bustier.”

  
Adrien returned her smile, “It’s very nice to meet you.”

  
“If you’ll follow me, I’ll show you where the classroom is.”

  
Adrien glanced towards his father hopefully, waiting for a simple ‘good luck’ or maybe a brief clap on the shoulder.

  
What he got was, “Make sure to contact Nathalie if you need anything.” Then his father whirled out of the room.

  
Adrien’s heart sank a little, but he snapped out of it when Ms. Bustier started walking down the hallway.

  
“I understand that you and Miss Bourgeois are already acquainted?” She said as she walked.

  
“Uh, yeah, we’ve known each other since we were kids.” Adrien considered Chloé to be one of the only friends he’d ever had. All other friendships were usually cut off by his father before they could ever amount to anything. Chloé was one of the few people he approved of.

  
“It’s always good to have a friend when you go to a new place.” Ms. Bustier said, her heels clacking against the hard tile. “I’m sure you’ll make other friends super quick.”

  
Adrien smiled. He liked this teacher infinitely better than Mr. Damocles. She didn’t have a hint of manipulation behind her words, just kindness. He always liked people who seemed honest.  
“Here we are,” She pushed open the door to the classroom, “Everyone, this is our new student, Adrien Agreste.”

  
He was met with a chorus of hellos and other greetings. He found Chloé’s eyes immediately and she beamed at him. He gave a little wave.  
“Hi, I look forward to meeting you all.”

  
“We arranged for you to sit next to Chloé, we figured you would be most comfortable there.” Ms. Bustier gestured to the empty seat.

  
“Thank you.” Adrien said as he slid into the seat. He set his white bag onto the floor next to his legs. Chloé was looking at him and just smiling.

  
“What?” He whispered.

  
“Nothing, I’m just so glad you’re finally here.” She whispered back.

  
“Alright,” Ms. Bustier called. “Pass your paper to the person next to you for grading. Adrien, since you weren’t here last Friday, you’re excused.”

  
He smiled at her and watched as people shuffled around, sometimes giving a quick word of conversation.

  
He was going to like it here.

Lunch was so lively compared to the meals he normally had a home. To be honest, it was a bit overwhelming. Chloé had invited him to sit with her, which he of accepted. He didn’t really have much in the way of options. She had introduced him to a few of her friends.

  
Sabrina was the first, and to be honest she didn’t pay him much attention. She introduced herself with a few words and then continued typing on her smartphone. She seemed permanently attached to the thing or looking at some binder of hers.

  
Then there was Kim, who was significantly taller than Adrien and he mentioned he was on the swim team. He seemed nice enough, but he only talked about sports. Adrien’s father never really let him play or watch sports on television, so he felt a little out of the loop.

  
The four of them were walking back from the cafeteria when Chloé bumped into one of the classmates. Adrien recognized him from earlier, and it was hard not to. The guy was huge. When they collided, Chloé spluttered for a moment.

  
“Ivan! Watch where you’re going you big lug!” Chloé said with indignation. “I can’t afford to get injured because you think you can stampede all over the hallway as you like.”  
“I-” Ivan stuttered.

  
“Ugh!” Chloé shoved his shoulder and stormed past him. Ivan stumbled for a second and Adrien was slightly impressed Chloé had managed to even move him. However, her attitude surprised him so much that he stood in shock for a few moments. He had never heard Chloé speak like that before. He wasn’t sure what to do. He didn’t want to offend his only friend, so he simply gave the boy what he hoped was a sympathetic smile and followed her.

  
“Hey! What do you think you’re doing shoving people around like that?” A voice called. He saw a young woman with dark skin and red hair storm towards Chloé. He was secretly relieved that someone else was going to call her out on her manners so he wouldn’t have to. She stood confidently in front of Chloé and was accompanied by a girl with a pink shirt and deep black hair.

  
“I’m sorry,” Chloé said, and for a second Adrien though she was going to apologize. Then she added, “Do I know you?”

  
The other girl narrowed her eyes. “It’s Alya, in case you were wondering.”

  
“I wasn’t.”

  
Alya huffed. “You can’t just go around pushing people around like that. You should apologize.”

  
Chloé’s gaze shifted to the girl next to Alya. “You know, I expected behavior like this from the new girl, but you, Marinette?”

  
The girl with black hair shifted uncomfortably. “She’s right.”

  
Chloé folded her arms and gave a dangerous glare. “Careful what you say, I could have you on the bench for the rest of the season.”

The girl, Marinette, went silent. Alya stared at her expression with shock, then turned to glare at Chloé.

  
“Oh, so you just manipulate your entire team like this huh?” Alya pointed a finger at her face, “Some captain you are.”

  
Chloé scoffed. “Think whatever you like. I’m leaving. See you in class Anya.”

  
“Alya.”

  
Chloé walked past her without another word. He smiled sheepishly at Alya and Marinette. He then received the most scathing glare he’d ever seen from the latter, her soft blue eyes turned sharp and icy cold.

  
Great, one day in and he was already making enemies. He hurried after Chloé until he was next to her.

  
“You shouldn’t have done that.” Adrien scolded.

  
“Oh, don’t worry about them, Adrikins,” Chloé barely cast a look in his direction. “You’ll learn that not everyone in this dump is worth your time and energy.”

  
Adrien was opening his mouth to say something when he heard snickering behind him from Sabrina and Kim. He turned and they were hunched around a piece of paper. Chloé whirled around and pursed her lips.

  
“What’s so funny?” She asked.

  
“Check out this paper that Ivan dropped,” Kim laughed and handed Chloé the slip of paper. It had been crumpled slightly and unfolded. Chloé snatched it with burning curiosity in her eyes.

  
“Ew, what is this, a sappy love poem?” Chloé said, holding the paper far from her face.

  
“Who would want to go out with Ivan?” Sabrina laughed, and Kim joined in.

  
Chloé pulled out her phone and took a picture of the paper. “I know some people who’ll just love this.”

  
“Chloé!” Adrien said, “That poem is probably private. You shouldn’t just send it out to people.”

  
“Calm down.” Kim put a hand on his shoulder. “It’s just a bit of teasing, everybody does it. That’s just how school is.”

  
“Chloé!” Adrien said again, glaring at her.

  
“He’s right.” She said, still typing on her phone. “Don’t worry, Adrikins, stick around me and you’ll get the hang of it in no time.”

  
Adrien wasn’t sure he ever wanted to get the hang of it, but Chloé had already put her phone in her pocket. He sighed; the damage was already done. She then took out a piece of gum and popped it in her mouth. “Come on, let’s get going.”

  
They walked back to class as Adrien tried to ignore the guilty feeling in his stomach.

“Seriously, who does she think she is?” Alya ranted as they walked down the hallway towards the vending machines.

  
“I wish I could stand up to her like you do.” Marinette sighed.

  
“I can’t believe she threatened to bench you!” Alya gestured wildly in the air. “Why doesn’t your coach do anything?”

  
“The coach is a pretty hands-off guy; all he does is sign papers.” Marinette explained as she popped a few coins into the vending machine. “Chloé is in charge of basically everything.”  
“And I can’t believe that new guy is friends with her.”

  
“Oh, I bet he’s just as bad as her.” Marinette said, “Didn’t you recognize him?”

  
“No,” Alya said, “Should I?”

  
Marinette turned to face Alya, “Haven’t you ever heard of Gabriel Agreste?”

  
“No,” Alya frowned.

  
“He’s a famous fashion designer,” Marinette explained, “I actually really like his work. Adrien is his famous model son. I’m sure you’ve heard that Chloé is the mayor’s daughter already.”  
“Yeah, I’m not that out of the loop.”

  
“They’re both probably rich, spoiled teen brats, I’m not surprised they’re friends at all.” Marinette grumbled.

  
“Well,” Alya said, “I am not gonna let teen princess Chloé Bourgeois walk all over other people as she pleases.”

  
Marinette smiled. “You’re a good person, Alya.”

  
“Come on, let’s get to class.”

  
The rest of the day went by rather quickly, and Marinette tried not to let her annoyance at Chloé ruin the rest of her day. She tried to ignore her all through football practice as best she could, grimacing at her cursing and insults. It was a relief when practice finally ended, and Marinette could go back home to the bakery. A quiet afternoon of sketching would hopefully take her mind off things. She sat down at her favorite table in the corner as usual and tried to clear her mind.

  
She was in the middle of sketching a man with a scarf as she heard a voice over her shoulder.

  
“Do you often come here and sketch the customers?”

  
Marinette whirled around. It was the woman from that morning, the sunglasses woman. She was still wearing them (indoors? again?) and was peering at her sketches.  
“Um,” Marinette started with uncertainty, “Actually, I live here. My parents own the store.”

  
“Ah,” the woman said, “that makes sense, may I see?”

  
She held out her hand and Marinette placed the book into it with caution. She squinted at the woman suspiciously, but the woman ignored her and flipped through the pages.  
“Your designs are quite good,” she said, “ever think about doing anything with them?”

  
Marinette’s face warmed at the compliment, “No, not really. It’s just a hobby.”

  
The woman only smiled and handed the book back. “If you have talent you should share it. You never know how things will turn out.”

  
Marinette wasn’t sure what to say to that, she opened her mouth but was saved by a voice calling her name.

  
She turned to see who had called, and saw Mrs. Chamack, who had her daughter in her arms.

  
“Hello, Mrs. Chamack” She smiled, and then dropped it when she saw the look on her face. She seemed a bit distressed, her eyebrows creased with worry.

  
She walked up to her slowly, “Uh, you don’t have to say yes or anything, but could you watch my daughter this afternoon? I know it’s on super short notice.”

  
She looked at the girl, Manon, who was staring at her with wide eyes.

  
Marinette smiled. “It’s no problem, really.”

  
“Um.” The woman stuttered, and then blushed. “You should also know that, um….”

  
Marinette stared at her for a bit before she continued, “I might not be able to pay you.” She seemed embarrassed to admit it.

  
Marinette simply smiled and waved her hand. “Oh, that doesn’t really matter. I’d be happy to watch Manon for the afternoon.”

  
The woman breathed a sigh of relief, “Thank you.”

  
Marinette took Manon’s hand, “lets go upstairs.” She turned to say goodbye to the mysterious woman, but she was nowhere to be found. Her sketchbook lay open on the table. She shook her head and took it, pushing the encounter from her mind.

Adrien sat in the back of his father’s car in a very uncomfortable suit. His father was dragging him to some party that Adrien didn’t care about. He was used to fancy parties like this one. His father was constantly attending them to talk to his business partners and other acquaintances. Chloé wouldn’t even be at this one, so he would have no one to talk to.

  
He stared out the window as the car pulled through to the front door of the hotel that was hosting the party. He sighed and waited until his bodyguard pulled the door open for him and his father. Adrien walked behind him as he greeted a few people Adrien didn’t care to recognize.

  
The dining room was filled with the noise of polite laughter and clinking dishes. Adrien saw his father walk away to greet some other man. At least there was food at this event. Adrien walked to find a plate and then took it into the hallway, looking for some peaceful balcony that overlooked the city.

  
He walked past the kitchen and smelt fresh bread and sizzling vegetables through the window. He could hear how busy the people were, yelling for different ingredients. As he walked towards the end of the hallway, the kitchen door swung open and a man with black hair and disheveled clothes came bursting through. Adrien backed up quickly to avoid running into him. The man braced himself against the opposite wall.

  
“Get out of my kitchen and stay out!” He heard a booming voice say, then the doors swung closed.

  
“Sheesh, what’s up with him?” The man grumbled, and then straightened himself. He was wearing slacks and a button up top with his tie untied around his shoulders. He twisted a ring around his finger nervously, and then looked up at Adrien. “Sorry for almost crashing into you. I guess Chef doesn’t take kindly to people trying to swipe his bread.” The man laughed, and then winked at him.  
“Here, have mine.” Adrien said, handing him the slice from his plate.

  
“Hey, thanks!” The man said, biting into it eagerly. “Glad to see not all you rich folk are stuck-up bastards.”

  
Adrien laughed, genuinely this time. “I feel the same way sometimes. I’m here for a party, but I try to avoid talking with the other guests.”

  
“Oh?” the man said, still gnawing on the bread.

  
Adrien shook his head. “They all want something from you, and most are rarely honest.”

  
The man nodded his head in agreement. “I can’t imagine living like that.” He admitted. “I like living my life ignoring what other people think. Makes me feel as free as a bird.”

  
“I wish I could live like that.” Adrien smiled sadly.

  
The man laughed. “Hey, you never know how things will turn out. Maybe you will.”

  
“Yeah, maybe.” Adrien said.

  
“I should go, wouldn’t want Chef to call hotel security on me. It was nice to meet you, Adrien Agreste.” Then he walked off without another word.

  
Adrien smiled and tried to remember if he had told the man his name or not. He shook his head and continued walking down the hallway.

Adrien arrived at the lockers early the next morning. He had a few new textbooks to organize, and he was in the middle of reorganizing when he heard a commotion the next row over. He shared a curious glance with a kid with headphones and glasses, and they both walked over to see what the big deal was.

  
“I know it was you Kim!” That kid from yesterday, Ivan, was yelling in his face. “How could you do something like that?”

  
“Hey.” Kim said with a relaxed tone. “Don’t blame me. I’m not the one who sent it out to everyone.”

  
Ivan stepped back with a furious expression on his face, and then stormed out of the room. Some of the other went back to whatever they were doing, and Kim had a glint of satisfaction in his eyes.

  
“Whoa,” The kid next to him said, “What’s that about?”

  
“I think I know.” Adrien responded. “I’m pretty sure Chloé sent out a personal letter or something to the whole school.” Then after a moment he said, “I should have stopped her.”

  
The guy squinted at him, “Why didn’t you?”

  
Adrien sighed. “She’s the only real friend I have at this school. I didn’t want to do anything to offend her.”

  
His eyes widened. “Dude, you seriously need some new friends.” He held out his hand. “I’m Nino.”

  
“Adrien.” He took Nino’s hand and shook it.

  
“Walk to class together?” Nino asked.

  
Adrien nodded and followed him. Nino asked him a few questions about Chloé and his life, and Adrien did his best to answer them. When they arrived in class, Chloé was already there talking to Sabrina. Ivan was notably absent from his seat, and Adrien felt bad he hadn’t done anything to help him.

  
When class started, Ivan still didn’t show, and Adrien began to be worried. He was struggling to listen to what Ms. Bustier was saying. He would have to talk to Chloé after class had ended, he wasn’t sure how long he could put up with this.

  
His thoughts were interrupted by a huge crashing noise from outside. His head whipped up, and his classmates were all looking between each other and the teacher with confusion.  
“What the hell was that?” Chloé said from next to him.

  
Ms. Bustier smiled. “Calm down everyone, I’m sure it was nothing.” As soon as she had finished however, there was another large crash.

  
“Holy shit,” Said a kid with an afro and glasses. “Turn on the news.”

  
Ms. Bustier frowned but then pulled up a news website on her computer. The class gasped and started muttering at the sight of what appeared to be a giant stone monster.

  
Chloé scoffed. “That can’t be real.” Adrien silently agreed.

  
“You might not want to say that after you’ve seen it.” Alya said. She pointed out the window she was standing next to. The whole class moved at once towards the window, scrambling to catch a glimpse at whatever Alya was pointing at. Adrien stood but didn’t move any closer.

  
The door to the classroom flew open to reveal a young boy with freckles and red hair.

  
“The school’s being evacuated,” He said, slightly out of breath.

  
“Keep calm everyone,” Ms. Bustier said, “Lets calmly make our way to the front yard.”

  
The class didn’t stop their muttering as they made their way out of the classroom. Chloé walked next to him, and she was strangely silent as they walked. He could see that other classes were also making their way towards the front doors, the red headed kid delivering his message to each of them.

  
As soon as he walked outside, he could see that his bodyguard and Nathalie were already waiting for him. She opened the door and he slid inside. She sat next to him on the other side of the car as it drove off.

  
“Do you know what’s going on?” Adrien asked. Nathalie shook her head and continued scrolling on her tablet. She appeared to be monitoring different news feeds and Adrien did his best to read them from his seat across the car. As best as he could tell, there was a stone monster rampaging throughout Paris. It was like something out of a comic book. Outside the car window, people were rushing about trying to get indoors. For once he was grateful for Nathalie and his bodyguard.

  
As Adrien walked through the front doors of his house, his father was no where to be found. Adrien felt a little annoyed that his father couldn’t be bothered to speak to him even in a situation like this, and then he stormed to his room. He flopped over on his couch and stared at the ceiling for a few moments. He reached over for the remote to turn the news on.

  
They were showing a clip of the stone monster smashing a bunch of police vehicles and storming about the streets. Adrien swallowed and scrolled through a few more channels.  
He noticed a small box next to the remote, it was lying in the center of the table.

  
Adrien ignored the news broadcast and reached for the box. He was pretty sure it hadn’t been there before. It had a bunch of intricate carvings on it, and a few words in a language Adrien didn’t recognize. He opened the box slightly.

  
The lid flung all the way open and there was a burst of green light that cause Adrien to wince and cover his eyes with a hand. As the light faded, he slowly lowered it to peer at the contents.

  
There was a small black ball floating in front of him, except he soon noticed it wasn’t a ball at all. It was a small creature that looked a bit like a small cat, a floating small cat.

  
“Um, hello?” Adrien said, “What is this a genie or something?” He then felt slightly stupid for trying to talk to it. It was a cat, after all.

  
“Genie?” The cat yawned, and Adrien tilted his head back in surprise. “Please, I’m way cooler than that, much more personable too. Plagg, nice to meet you.”

  
Adrien opened his mouth to respond, but the cat had already floated over to his foosball table, and then proceeded to gnaw on the tops of the players.

  
“Don’t touch that!” Adrien scolded as he launched himself at the cat. It evaded his grasp and flew over towards the television.

  
“Ooh what’s this?” Plagg asked, pointing to the remote. “Can you eat it?” Then the cat started gnawing on that too, and Adrien rushed towards him. He spit the remote out. “Guess not.”

  
Adrien flung himself over the edge of the couch caught the cat with two hands. “What are you and what are you doing here?”

  
“Look, I’m a kwami. I grant magical powers, blah blah blah.”

  
“Magical powers?” Adrien said dryly. “Yeah right.”

  
“What do you call that then?” Plagg asked, gesturing towards the TV where images of the stone monster were still being broadcast.

  
Adrien paused for a second, “Well, you’ve got a point there.”

  
“Look, I grant the power of destruction. Do you have anything to eat?” Plagg asked. “I’m starving.”

  
“Is my father pranking me or something?” Adrien said then after a moment added, “No, that would require him to grow a sense of humor.”

  
“Your father can never know about this!” The cat snapped, which was far from his normal easygoing tone. “Or anyone else for that matter. With my help, I’ll turn you into a superhero!”

  
“Superhero?” Adrien asked, “Yeah right, my father barely just decided to let me go to school. There’s no way he’ll let me fly around doing whatever it is superhero’s do.”

  
“Well, I can’t make you fly, but with my help you can certainly get out of this house.” Plagg flew over to the box and picked up the ring. He dropped it into Adrien’s hand. “Unless you want to continue to be stuck here.”

  
Adrien swallowed. His father would be furious, but what he didn’t know couldn’t hurt him, right? He slid the ring onto his finger.

  
“You have the cat miraculous, and it’s power of destruction,” Plagg explained. “You alone can defeat Stoneheart and stop the akuma.”

  
“Stoneheart? Akuma?” Adrien said.

  
“Stoneheart is the supervillain created by an akuma from the moth miraculous.” Plagg continued. “it takes the form of a butterfly and preys on the negative emotions of its victim.”

  
“Victim?” Adrien asked, and then pointed at the TV. “You mean that’s a person?” Plagg nodded.

  
“As the black cat, your ability is triggered by saying the word ‘cataclysm’ and then you will destroy the next object you touch. After you destroy the object the akuma is hidden in, you can catch and purify it.”

  
“Gonna be honest, that sounds super cool.” Adrien said.

  
Plagg folded his arms. “Believe me, it is. Whenever you’re ready to transform, you just say ‘claws out’”

  
“Plagg, Claws out!” Adrien said, a little impatiently. He watched as the cat became a black blur and whirled into the ring. With a flash of green light, he looked down at his hands. They were covered in black leather, and Adrien quickly ran to look at himself in the mirror.

  
His entire suit was made of leather, and he had a hood with cat ears and a mask that obscured his face. He had a metal rod hanging on his waist. It had a small screen that was like a smartphone and two buttons. He pressed one of them and then jumped in surprise as it extended straight into the mirror, causing glass to fly everywhere.

  
“Sick.” Adrien said. “So Plagg, where to next?” He paused for a response and then realized that Plagg was no where to be found. He did remember seeing the cat somehow enter the ring. Adrien guessed he couldn’t talk to him while in superhero form. He wouldn’t have transformed so quickly if he knew he wouldn’t be able to talk to Plagg like this.

  
“Ok then, lets just focus on getting out of the house.” Adrien walked towards the window and opened it. He then braced the rod against the ground and pushed one of the buttons. The rod extended and Adrien was launched into the air onto the rooftops of Paris.

Marinette had rushed home after school was excused and found her parents huddled around a TV screen watching the news.

  
When her mom noticed her, she exclaimed, “Marinette! You’re alright!”

  
Marinette kissed her mother on the cheek and sat down. “Yeah, I’m alright.” She turned her attention back to the TV and watched as footage of the stone monster played. “This is crazy.” She whispered.

  
“I’m sure as long as we stay indoors, we’ll be fine.” Her father said, but he didn’t sound very convinced himself.

  
Marinette stood up. “I think I need a nap.” Her mother smiled sympathetically, and Marinette walked up the stairs to her room. She sat at her desk and turned on her computer. She sighed and debated over whether to turn on the news. That was when she noticed it.

  
It was a small, hexagon shaped box with markings on the top. Marinette’s eyebrows creased in confusion. She was pretty sure she had never seen this before. Maybe it was a gift from her mother. Curious, she opened it.

  
There was a burst of red light that flooded the room and Marinette yelped and pushed her chair back. The light soon faded, and in its place was a small red and black creature.

  
“Hello!” It said brightly. Marinette yelped again, and then proceeded to drop the box and hit the creature to the other side of the room with a book. The creature tumbled towards her bed, but soon righted itself. Marinette grabbed another book.

  
“Marinette!” It said as she threw the book at it. “Calm down!”

  
“What are you?” Marinette demanded, throwing a pen. The creature dodged all the flying objects.

  
“Let me explain!” It said as Marinette grabbed a cup and snatched the creature out of the air, pinning it to the ground.

  
“Ok,” It said from inside the cup, “We can talk like this if it makes you feel better.”

  
“What the hell are you?” Marinette asked. “How do you know my name?”

  
“Listen to me,” The creature said, “I’m a kwami, and my name is Tikki. Just let me explain.”

  
“Explain quickly.” Marinette squinted at Tikki suspiciously. “Or I’m calling the police, wait no. Animal control?”

  
“Please, I’m your friend Marinette.” Tikki said. “You’re the only person who can stop Stoneheart!”

  
“Stoneheart? Are you talking about that stone monster out there?” Marinette asked, and then laughed. “Me? Stop that thing? You must be joking.”

  
“With my help, you can become a superhero!” Tikki said brightly.

  
“I’m the least qualified person to become a superhero.” Marinette said. “Hey! I have a friend, Alya. She seems like more of a superhero type. I’m sure she’d be up for the job.”

  
“No.” Tikki said. “You were chosen for a reason.”

  
“I doubt it.” Marinette said.

  
“I’ll explain more, if you wouldn’t mind lifting this cup.” Tikki said.

  
Marinette frowned, but slowly removed the cup from the floor. She sat back in the chair and her eyes followed Tikki as she picked the box up off the floor and handed it to Marinette.

  
“These earrings are the ladybug miraculous, and they grant the power of creation.” Tikki explained. “You can use these powers to stop villains like Stoneheart.”

  
“What is that thing anyway?” Marinette asked.

  
“It’s a person who has been turned into a villain by the moth miraculous.”

  
“There are more than one of these?” Marinette gaped.

  
“Yes, and the moth miraculous is using its akumas to create supervillains. It takes the shape of a butterfly and targets those with strong emotions.”

  
“How am I supposed to help with this?”

  
Tikki smiled. “You can use your powers to break the object where the akuma is hiding and then catch and purify it. You can also use your creation ability, ‘sketch’ to assist you in battle.”

  
“Sketch?”

  
“Your ability allows you to create whatever one object you can draw. However, you can only use it once and then you’ll transform back.”

  
“I’m not a very good artist.” Marinette admitted.

  
“Nonsense!” Tikki said, “You were chosen because of your design abilities.”

  
Marinette wasn’t sure what to say to that. This whole scenario was just too insane. She would have been convinced she was dreaming if she hadn’t pinched herself three times already.

  
“Whenever your ready, just say the words ‘spots out’ and you’ll transform.” Tikki said. “But I’m just warning you, you won’t be able to talk to me once you’ve transformed.”

  
Marinette swallowed, and then nodded. She took a couple of deep breaths and slipped the earrings onto her ears. “Alright, spots on?”

  
In a flash of red light, Marinette winced and then fell back into the chair. She looked down at her knees and saw her legs covered in red spots. She looked in the mirror to inspect the rest of her outfit. Her whole body was covered in these spots, except for black boots that came up to her knees, as well as a pair of black cloves. There was also a black belt with a round disk attached to it. There was a mask, which also had spots. Her hair was divided into two black pigtails. She flicked one of them. Really, pigtails? They weren’t exactly her style.

  
She pulled off the disk and then noticed it was a yoyo. She flung it around and it wound its way around the leg of her desk. When she pulled to try to get it loose the leg broke off, sending her books and papers crashing to the ground. She winced and the yoyo returned to her hand. She hurried up to her balcony, to try to avoid doing any more damage.

  
She sighed to herself. This was a horrible idea. She flung her yoyo to the opposite roof and then let out a screech as it dragged her over there with it. Her legs landed with a thump onto the room and for a moment she thought she was going to fall, but then caught herself on the edge. She pulled herself up with surprising ease. She was way stronger in this superhero form than normal. She ran along the edge of the roof, not sure where she was going. She probably should’ve turned on the news for a location or something.

  
After running for a while, she noticed that she wasn’t getting tired at all. She laughed a little to herself, Chloé Bourgeois would be so shocked if she could see her now. She jumped easily from roof to roof until she collided with something and was sent tumbling to the ground. She managed to catch herself with her yoyo, and then ended up in a tangled mess with the stranger.

  
“Who are you?” The man asked. He had a hood and mask that seemed vaguely like hers. He stared at her for a second, and then pushed her off. They both went tumbling into the street.

  
“Holy shit!” The man exclaimed. She now noticed his hood had cat ears, and he had a tail? The man whipped out a staff from his hip and pointed it in her face threateningly. “Are you the one who caused this? Are you the moth miraculous?”

  
“Moth miraculous?” Marinette said, “Clearly I’m a ladybug.”

  
“Huh.” The man said. “Plagg didn’t mention a ladybug.”

  
Marinette opened her mouth to speak but was interrupted by a crash. She whirled around, and noticed the sound was coming from her own high school stadium.

  
“Are you here to beat the villain too?” The man in black asked. “Plagg didn’t mention a partner.”

  
“Who’s Plagg?” Marinette asked. “And who are you?”

  
“Plagg’s my kwami.” He said. Marinette bristled a little at the term. “And I’m A-” He stopped himself for a second. “I guess I need, like, a superhero name or something?”

  
After a moment he said, “Cat Noir. I’m Cat Noir. Who are you?”

  
“I’m-” Her voice was interrupted by another crash. “I think we should probably go and take care of that.”

  
“No name yet?” Cat Noir teased, “Well if you insist my lady.” He used his staff to launch himself up to the roof. He was obviously much more practiced than Marinette was. She used her yoyo to clumsily follow him. They both dropped down into the stadium where the giant stone monster was.

  
“Kim!” It roared. It was then that Marinette noticed her classmate cowering at the other end of the stadium. She felt a flash of annoyance at the fact that he wasn’t indoors. The other superhero was already rushing the thing. He hit it with his staff, and she could have sworn that the thing got bigger. She rushed over to Kim while Cat Noir continued the fight.

  
She grabbed his shoulder and shoved him towards the exit. “Get inside!” She hissed. Kim gaped at her. It was odd seeing an expression of understanding and respect from a classmate who always looked down on her. Marinette felt proud for a moment, it definitely wasn't an unlpleasant feeling. He scurried towards the exit.

  
The monster noticed him running and roared again, slamming Cat Noir into the ground. Marinette cried out in worry, but he was already getting back up. Apparently, they were also a lot tougher in this form as well. She used her yoyo to stop the monster’s other fist, which was clenched tight around something.

  
The monster yanked its fist back and sent her flying across the stadium towards Cat Noir. She hit the ground hard and winced. The monster grew a little bigger. Cat Noir had pulled himself to his feet and was about to rush the monster again when Marinette grabbed him by the tail.

  
“Hey!” He shouted.

  
“Wait a moment,” Marinette said, “Can’t you see he gets bigger with every attack? We can’t fight him like this.”

  
Cat Noir frowned for a moment, and then smirked. “Let’s use our powers then! Cataclysm!”

  
Marinette watched as his hand turned black, and then he smiled and pressed his hand against the goalpost. It crumbled to dust before her eyes. Marinette gaped at him and couldn’t help but wonder what that would look like against a person. She shuddered.

  
“Whoa!” Cat Noir said, “Alright you big troll, it’s you and me!” He then ran towards the monster before Marinette could yell for him to wait. He pressed his hand to the monster’s foot, but nothing happened. The monster kicked him back towards Marinette on the other side of the field. She pulled him into the stands.

  
Cat Noir groaned and Marinette sighed. “We can only use our power once and then you only have a few minutes before you transform, didn’t your kwami tell you anything?”

  
“I guess I was a little impatient.” He grumbled. Marinette smiled.

  
“Maybe I’ll have better luck.” She said. “Sketch!”

  
After another flash of light, she found a piece of thin chalk in her hand. Now if only she could think of a solution.

  
“We have to break the object the akuma is in.” She wondered aloud.

  
“He doesn’t have anything on him!” Cat Noir whined.

  
“No, but he hasn’t opened his left hand at all.” She said, “I think he’s holding it!” She looked around at her surroundings and noticed a long hose next to- Alya?

  
I have an idea!”

  
She turned to the grass of the stadium and wondered if she needed concrete for this to work. As she drew across the grass, she found that the chalk magically left marks anyway. She finished her sketch and tapped it. It turned into cloth right before her eyes.

  
“Is that a wetsuit?” Cat Noir asked.

  
“Promise me something?” Marinette asked.

  
“Um, sure? What is it?” Cat Noir said nervously.

  
“Don’t hate me for this.” She said, pressing the button on Cat Noir’s staff, launching him high into the air as he yelped. Stoneheart caught him in his right hand as Marinette attached the end of a long hose to the wetsuit.

  
“Hey!” She yelled, “Catch me if you can!” She jumped and flew towards the stone monster. Its eyes widened and it reached out to catch her. Marinette turned and yelled towards Alya.

  
“Hey you!” She screamed. “Turn that on!” Alya turned and noticed the hose and quickly turned the valve. Marinette could feel the wetsuit begin to swell with water. As Stoneheart’s fist expanded Marinette quickly slipped out and landed on her feet. She then ripped the purple bundle and watched in awe as the stone monster disappeared in a flurry of purple light. Cat Noir dropped to the ground, and quickly stood to face her.

  
In Stoneheart’s place was her classmate, Ivan? Cat Noir seemed as equally surprised as her that he had appeared. She wasn’t expecting it to be a normal person.

  
“Ugh.” Ivan groaned. “What happened?” So apparently, he didn’t remember a thing.

  
“You were turned into a supervillain.” Cat Noir explained, and Ivan gaped at him. “Don’t worry, it wasn’t your fault. The akumas prey on negative emotions.”

  
Right, Marinette remembered her kwami saying something like that. It was a relief to know that the whole thing wasn’t Ivan’s fault.

  
“Listen-” Cat Noir started, but then his ring gave off a beeping noise.

  
“I think that means you’re about to transform back.” Marinette said. “I’ll take care of this.”

  
Cat Noir smiled, “See you around, my lady.” Then he was gone. Marinette turned back towards Ivan, and then noticed the small paper on the ground. She picked it up.

  
As she read it, she realized it was a love poem. “This is really sweet.” She said, “did you write it?”

  
Ivan blushed and nodded, “I wrote it for this girl I like. This other girl in my class, Chloé, found it first and sent it out to half the school.”

  
Marinette winced. She hadn’t known about that. Of course, she wasn’t exactly on the top of Chloé’s contact list either.

  
“You should tell this girl how you feel.” Marinette said.

  
“What if she rejects me?” He asked.

  
“You won’t know until you try.” Marinette said, “And if she does, at least you’ll know. But stay positive!”

  
Ivan smiled a little bit, and then Marinette noticed Alya running up to her, phone in hand.

  
“Hey! Can I get a small interview from one of the new heroes of Paris?”

  
Her earrings beeped, and she smiled softly. “Unfortunately, I’m on a bit of a time crunch.”

  
“A name then, can I get a name?”

  
Marinette smiled, “It’s Ladybug.” Then she threw her yoyo towards the edge of the stadium and was gone.

  
Maybe this whole superhero thing would work out after all.


	2. Origins Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rewrite of Origins Part 2--

On the other hand, maybe this superhero thing was a giant mistake.

Marinette watched the newscast with her mouth hanging open. An unpleasant feeling tugged through her stomach as she watched image after image of citizens transformed into more Stonehearts. There were probably fifty of them so far, and there were more and more by the hour.

“Oh shit.” She said after a few minutes of silence.

“Marinette!” Tikki exclaimed, causing Marinette to jump. “Didn’t you capture the akuma after you defeated Stoneheart?”

“Oh shit!” Marinette pressed her palm to her forehead, unable to look away from the screen.

“At this rate,” Tikki continued, “There will be hundreds of Stonehearts before the end of the week.”

Marinette made a noise that was a strange mix between a grumble and a whimper, and Tikki looked at her, eyes intent.

“What happened out there?” Tikki asked, her voice soft.

“I was a little distracted with Ivan, Alya, and the fact I have a partner you didn’t tell me about.” Marinette mumbled.

“I have no idea who that boy is or how he got the cat miraculous,” Tikki said, “but he isn’t your partner. Miraculous holders have traditionally worked alone.”

“This was a horrible mistake.” Marinette leaned back in her chair and closed her eyes. “I told you I wasn’t cut out for this.”

“You were chosen for a reason.” Tikki flew in front of the computer screen. “You made a mistake, sure, but everyone makes them. It was your first time, and we can still fix this.”

Marinette swallowed, but her throat was scratchy and dry. She looked up towards the ceiling again and tried to compose herself before she started doing something embarrassing, like crying. “I can’t do this Tikki, you should find a new ladybug.”

Tikki sighed. “If you really refuse to do this, I can’t stop you.”

“I’m sorry.” Marinette said as she pulled off the red earrings and slipped them back into the box, and snapped the lid closed.

Her room was empty now, sunlight shone through the skylight in the ceiling. It seemed awfully quiet, and Marinette was had little to do except ponder her own failure. She stood up slowly and turned the computer screen back on. She felt the grooves of the box underneath her fingers. Alya would make a great superhero, certainly a better one that Marinette had turned out to be.

Marinette clicked a link that led to a speech that the mayor had made earlier that morning.

“We are doing our best to help all those who have been affected by this strange new… disease,” The mayor paused. “And I assure you that the police and the army will handle this new problem. We do not need to rely on these rumored superheroes. As of right now, these stone statues are not moving, and we have our best scientists trying to work out what has happened. For now, we should go about our business as normal.”

“Marinette!” Her mother’s voice called from downstairs.

Marinette sighed and turned off the computer. “Coming!” She yelled but had barely stood when her mother’s head popped through the trapdoor that led to the stairs.

“You’re awake!” Her mother said, “Normally you sleep like a log. Is this stone statue thing really bothering you that much? I’m sure the authorities have it under control.”

Marinette swallowed. “Yeah. You’re right, I’ve nothing to worry about.” She gave a fake smile, but her mother narrowed her eyes with suspicion.

“Come and have breakfast. School will be starting soon.”

Marinette watched her mother’s descending figure as she picked up the box from the table. She slipped it into her jacket pocket and followed her mother down the stairs.

Adrien walked into the empty locker room early that morning. He pushed his textbook aside and set the small tin of cheese he smuggled into his backpack behind the books.

“Are you sure you can’t eat anything else?” Adrien grumbled.

“Can’t or won’t?” Plagg said, looking far too relaxed out in the open. Adrien scoffed.

“I can’t believe I’m going to end up smelling like cheese all the time.” Adrien slammed his locker door shut and sighed. “I messed up real bad, didn’t I?”

“Technically,” Plagg said, “It wasn’t your fault. That bug girl said she’d take care of it.”

“I thought you said purifying the akuma was my responsibility?” Adrien accused. “You can’t blame her; it was my fault.”

“She could purify it just fine.” Plagg said. “Oh well, now we’ll have to do things the hard way.”

Adrien wanted desperately to ask what the hard way meant before he heard a shrill “Adrikins!” call from the doorway. Plagg immediately moved into Adrien’s bag in a black blur.

Chloe jogged up to him. “Did you see something?” She asked.

Adrien’s felt his heart drop for a moment. “See what?”

Chloe paused for a moment. “Oh, never mind. I thought I saw a fly or a big bug. Ugh, I hate bugs. Especially bees.” She shuddered and gazed off into the distance for a bit.

Adrien gave her an odd look. She shrugged. “What? I’m allergic.” She tugged on his forearm and led him back towards the door. “Class is starting soon, and I wanted to talk to Sabrina before it started. Come on.”

Adrien followed Chloe through the halls, her blond ponytail swung gracefully back and forth. He noticed that a few of their classmates were gathered around the west wall of the hallway in a lopsided semi-circle. He could see Sabrina’s fiery red hair through the crowd, and so did Chloe. She shoved a taller girl aside and approached the scene.

“Dude you totally almost crushed me!” Kim said, pointing an accusing finger at Ivan’s face.

“I already told the press man!” Ivan snapped. “I don’t remember anything. I- I’m not like that.” He cast a brief glance in the other direction, looking past Kim’s shoulder, and then looked at the ground.

Chloe scoffed. “I’m sure. You’ve nothing in common with that thing at all. I mean he was big, ugly, and frightening. Completely different.” She raised an eyebrow, and Adrien elbowed her in the side. Chloe continued, “I wouldn’t be surprised if you got revenge on purpose.”

Ivan suddenly stood, the bench he was sitting on clattering behind him, and shoved Chloe aside. She didn’t look remotely surprised or distressed. She simply folded her arms and watched him leave.

The girl from yesterday, Marinette was standing at the edge of the group and rushed after him. Adrien cast a glare at Chloe and made to follow her.

He rounded the corner and didn’t see either of them. He walked down the hallway slowly until he heard voices. He pressed his ear to the door.

“You should tell Mylene how you feel.” A soft voice said, and he was sure it must belong to Marinette.

“I don’t know what you mean.” Ivan’s low voice responded.

“I saw the way you looked at her back there. If it helps, I think she likes you too.” Marinette said.

Adrien caught the inflection of surprise in Ivan’s voice. “Really?”

“Yeah, totally!” Marinette laughed softly, and Adrien couldn’t help but think about what a pleasant noise it was. “You should do something for her. Ooh, I can get you some pastries from my bakery. I think I remember her liking cinnamon…” She drifted off, lost in thought.

“Y-You’d do that?” Ivan asked.

“Of course!” Marinette said, her voice close. Too close. “We can go after school, I-”

The door flung open, hitting Adrien in the nose. He gasped and stumbled back a bit. Marinette and Ivan stood there in the doorway. Ivan’s face flushed a furious red, and for a moment he didn’t say a word.

“What-” Marinette spluttered, “You!”

“Was broadcasting my poem not enough for you?” Ivan said, his voice deadly quiet. It was somehow worse than yelling, it just sounded miserable.

“No wait-” Adrien said, but he had already turned around and stormed off. Marinette didn’t move and didn’t say a word.

“I only wanted to make sure he was alright.” Adrien explained.

“Right.” She said, her arms tightening around her slim frame. “Forgive me if I don’t believe you.” Then she turned around and was gone.

Adrien pressed a palm to his forehead. That went even worse than Adrien thought it would.

“Yikes,” Plagg rasped next to his ear. Adrien jumped back a bit and clutched his bag. “You aren’t very popular, are you?”

Adrien just shot him a glare and continued on his way to class.

Marinette stormed down the hallway with her fist clenched. She tried to push the encounter with Adrien from her mind. She had made it halfway down the stairs when she noticed that Alya was in a very one-sided shouting match with Chloe.

“You’re worse than that monster!” Alya yelled.

“Oh please.” Chloe said. “I’m not the one who broke Sabrina’s poor dad’s arm. Just because your amateur footage of those superheroes made national television doesn’t mean you get to be all stuck up about everything.”

“Me?” Alya spat. “Stuck up? Look in the mirror, princess.”

Chloe merely fidgeted with her phone. “Are you going to turn monster on us too?” She held her phone up. “If so, do it quick so I can catch it on camera and get my own footage on the news.”

“Ugh!” Alya stomped her foot. “You’re impossible.” She whirled around and almost smacked into Marinette. She then grabbed her arm and dragged her in the direction of the classroom.

“Whoa!” Marinette said after a moment and slowed her to a stop. “You can’t let Chloe rile you up like that.”

“She’s the worst!” Alya fumed, “How do you live with her?”

Marinette shrugged. “I thought your footage was very good.”

Alya sighed and put a hand on her shoulder. “Thanks Marinette. I’m sure these new superheroes will figure this all out soon.”

“You believe in them?” Marinette asked.

“I know what people are saying, but they didn’t see it happen firsthand. It was amazing, Marinette, I’ve never seen anything like it.”

Marinette felt the box in her pocked and took a deep breath. “If you could be a superhero, would you do it?”

“Hell yeah,” Alya said, “Fighting monsters, standing up for what’s right. It would be super cool. But I’m good with reporting on them for now.” She winked.

Marinette smiled and slowly took out the box and slipped it into Alya’s bag.

Inside the classroom, most of the classroom had already arrived, including Adrien and Chloe. Marinette sat down in her usual spot and waited for the bell to ring. Ivan’s seat was notably absent and for a moment Marinette felt a chill roll down her spine. Then she reminded herself that this was now Alya’s problem, not hers. She took a few deep breaths.

Ms. Bustier strolled into the classroom as usual, clipboard in hand. She had just reached the desk when a crashing noise came from the door.

Marinette barely had time to process what had happened before Stoneheart kicked the door in and grabbed Mylene in his hand.

“Ugh, again?” Chloe shouted. Seriously, did that girl have no sense of self-preservation?

Stoneheart roared and grabbed Chloe in his other hand. Mylene was screaming, and Chloe was surprisingly silent, albeit startled. Stoneheart then kicked in the wall and went storming down the street, kicking cars back and forth.

Alya stood up from where she was crouched under the desk. She whipped her phone out of her pocket. “I’m going after them!”

“Alya!” Marinette and Ms. Bustier said at the same time. Alya jumped over the desk and ran out the door. Marinette just stood there in shock. She cast a glance next to her and noticed that Alya left the bag with the miraculous inside. Great. She took one last look at the hole in the wall and then grabbed the back and followed her. She could hear Ms. Bustier shouting from behind her but ignored her.

Adrien ran towards the locker room as fast as he could, and then paused by the window. “Is this how every day of school usually is?”

“Not in my experience, no.” Plagg said. “We should consider ourselves lucky. We’ve barely had a full class since we got here.”

“That’s not a good thing.” Adrien responded. “Claws out!”

The flash of green light did not get any less blinding the second time, and Adrien took a moment to recover before launching himself out the window towards Stoneheart.

Stoneheart was big, but Adrien was still much faster. As he got closer, he expected to hear Chloe in distress, but she didn’t sound any more concerned than usual.

“Honestly, I will not be manhandled like this. You’re just proving my point from this morning you know!” Chloe yelled. Adrien’s mouth fell open and he almost fell off the roof he was standing on. Was she insane?

Adrien launched himself at the monster, hitting it with his staff. He dropped to the ground with a roll and watched as Stoneheart reached nearly double his size. “My bad!” He yelled.

“Are you stupid or something?” Chloe said. She sounded almost bored. Adrien grimaced at her comment.

Adrien was suddenly aware of what sounded like a stampede coming from the other direction. He wasn’t that far off the mark as he noticed seven more Stonehearts approach him. He groaned; he had completely forgotten the other Stonehearts had even existed.

He dodged in between various kicks and punches as the seven Stonehearts each tried to reach him. He managed to make two of them crash into each other, but he couldn’t keep this up long. The original Stoneheart continued down the road towards the Eiffel tower.

“Hey!” He shouted to the sky to no one in particular. “If you can hear me bug-lady, I could really use a hand!” To his disappointment, there was no response. He turned back towards the stone monsters.

“Looks like it’s just you and me, boys.”

Marinette raced down the road after Alya and was suddenly thankful for all the early morning runs Chloe forced her to go on. She still had the bag clutched in her hands. She stopped for a moment, completely out of breath. She then noticed a black blur fly by and hit Stoneheart on the shoulder.

She grimaced as it grew bigger. What in the world was Cat Noir thinking? Hadn’t she established that little detail last time they fought him? She glanced around for Alya, who was standing on the other side of the intersection, phone in hand. 

“Alya!” She cried, but her cry was lost in the footsteps of seven other Stonehearts. Cat Noir seemed to be struggling, and Marinette shook her head. She had to find Alya. She darted across the street and hid behind a car, but Alya was already on the move towards the original Stoneheart. Marinette groaned and took off after her.

She ran until her lungs burned, and she had completely lost sight of Alya. She turned down another road and saw her and Cat Noir there.

“Get back!” He screamed at her, and that was when Stoneheart threw the car.

For a moment, Marinette thought Alya was certainly dead, but Cat Noir threw his staff at the last second, throwing her away from it.

Marinette almost cried with relief, but Alya was still pinned there under the car. She nearly called her name but stopped when Cat Noir was slammed into the wall by one of the Stonehearts.

This was bad. This was very, very bad. For a moment Marinette just stood there, unsure of what to do. She closed her eyes and pulled the box out of the bag.

It opened with the same flash of red light it had when she opened it in her bedroom. Tikki was floating a few feet in front of her again. Marinette was already pressing the earrings to her ears.

“I thought you said you wouldn’t do this anymore.” Tikki said.

“There isn’t time for anyone else.” Marinette sighed. “Spots on!”

She could practically feel her exhaustion being wiped away as she transformed, and she found herself filled with energy. She could run easily again.

She flung her yoyo at the car and used it to unpin Alya, whose leg was clearly broken from the impact. She braced herself against the wall.

“Can you get yourself to safety?” Marinette asked, and Alya nodded. She then smiled with an unidentifiable look in her eye. Marinette turned away and ran after Stoneheart and Cat Noir. She picked his staff off the ground and hurled it at him as she passed. He extended the staff and flew out of Stoneheart’s arm. She then wound her yoyo around his ankle and pulled him over a lamppost.

For a moment, he hung there pathetically. Then he said, “Y’know, you’ve completely turned my world upside down.”

Marinette grinned, “Oh, so you’re a funny guy then.”

The Stonehearts had now surrounded them and were growling.

“I think I should work on my comedic timing.” Cat Noir said, and Marinette laughed.

“Let’s get out of here.” She jumped and pulled Cat Noir with her. He flipped over in mid air and fell into step beside her as they ran down the rooftop.

“Hey!” Cat Noir yelled. “What about those guys!”

“We need to go after the original.” Marinette said. “He has two live hostages.”

Cat Noir nodded and followed her lead down the streets of Paris. Stoneheart was standing in the center of the Eiffel tower, Chloe and Mylene still in his hands. Marinette could see police and army trucks surrounding it. There was a man dressed in uniform standing there with a megaphone.

“Hand over the hostages, and we’ll be able to come to some sort of understanding!” He yelled.

“Have her!” Stoneheart roared, and Marinette looked on in horror as he flung Chloe towards the ground like a baseball. Chloe shrieked, an actual scream that Marinette had never heard come out of her mouth before now. She had always been so cool-headed. She hadn’t even screamed when Stoneheart burst into the classroom. 

Marinette wasn’t even sure when she started running, her legs seemed to have a mind of her own. She leapt up into the air, catching Chloe by her knees and shoulders and landed gracefully on the ground.

For a few moments, Chloe just stared at her, and she was trembling slightly. Marinette just stared back until she noticed she was still holding Chloe bridal style and then set her gently on the ground.

“Are you alright?” Marinette asked. Even though she was annoyed with still Chloe from earlier, she wouldn’t wish her dead. Chloe just stared at her, mouth hanging open.

Marinette put a hand on her shoulder and Chloe’s mouth snapped shut. She averted her gaze and then glanced from Marinette’s gloved hand back to her face. Then her cheeks flushed a furious red.

“I’m fine.” Her voice was dry and raspy.

“Chloe!” A voice called, and the mayor of Paris had climbed out of his car. He tugged her into a deep embrace. He looked past her towards Marinette—no, Ladybug and smiled.

“Thank you.” He said, and for a moment Marinette felt something like pride.

“Ladybug!” Cat Noir called. Marinette looked over to where he was standing a couple of yards ahead. “They’re going to fire!”

“Wait!” Marinette called, running forward. Cat Noir followed her. “Don’t fire.”

The man in uniform turned to her. “Listen, I don’t know who you are—”

“I could say the same of you.” Marinette snapped, and then paused to wonder where that confidence came from.

“I,” the man started, “am General Morgan of the national army. This situation is under control. We don’t need the help of—well, whatever you are.”

“Haven’t you noticed?” Marinette asked. “He gets bigger with every attack!”

“Well do you have another plan? It didn’t go well last time you tried to handle this.”

Marinette shifted uncertainly, and then noticed Cat Noir doing the same. His gaze was focused on the ground.

They were interrupted by an awful hacking noise coming from Stoneheart. It leaned forward, and then backwards, and then it spit hundreds of butterflies into the air.

The general whirled around and gaped as he watched, then started shouting to some other men, similarly dressed in uniforms.

Cat Noir looked up, and then stared intently into Marinette’s eyes.

“We can do this.” He said. “If we hadn’t been here, that girl would be dead right now.” He pointed to Chloe, who was now wrapped in a shock blanket. Her father was speaking to her, but she had her eyes trained on Marinette. Cat Noir smiled and put two hands on her shoulders. “Let’s just remember to get the butterflies this time.”

Marinette smiled back. “Sound’s good to me.”

General Morgan pointed a finger, “Now wait a moment—”

Marinette didn’t wait to hear the end of that sentence, and neither did Cat Noir. They ran side by side and launched themselves up the sides of the Eiffel Tower. She whipped out her yoyo, and he pulled out his staff. They swung in tandem, and suddenly the butterflies had dispersed. She landed on the ground next to Stoneheart and Cat Noir. Stoneheart suddenly burst into purple light and was Ivan once again. Mylene was sitting on the ground, obviously still shaken.

Marinette approached them both cautiously. Cat Noir helped Ivan to his feet, and then turned to help Mylene.

Ivan looked horrified for a moment. “It happened again; I can’t believe it happened again!”

Marinette shook her head. “It wasn’t your fault.”

“I beg to disagree.” A voice called from behind Ivan. It was very out of breath. She turned to find General Morgan standing there, leaning over with a hand braced on his knee.

“Wow, you didn’t have to run all the way up here just to see us.” Cat Noir flashed a grin. “We’d have come down to give autographs eventually.”

“Shut up!” General Morgan snarled. “That boy is under arrest.”

Marinette stepped between the General and Ivan. “He had no control over his actions. It’s another miraculous causing this, and he has none.”

“Another miraculous?” The general scoffed, “You mean one of you did this?”

“Yes.” Marinette said, “And Cat Noir and I are going to catch him.”

“You and that boy? The authorities have this under control.”

“If I had left this under your control, that girl would be dead, and you would have arrested Ivan. Forgive me if I have little faith in your abilities.”

Cat Noir made a sound that resembled a snort, and then went silent.

“Excuse me?” The general asked, puffing out his chest.

“I assume even you can return these children to their homes and maybe get them some medical treatment?” Marinette asked, “Cat Noir and I should be leaving now.”

“Even if he isn’t to blame, who’s going to pay the hundreds of thousands of dollars in property damage!” The general swept out his arm towards Paris, and Marinette noticed the multiple damaged cars and buildings.

She smiled. “Oh, about that.” She raised her yoyo to the sky. “Miraculous Ladybug!”

There was a flash of bright white light, and she noticed the others had raised a hand to their eyes to block it. Marinette watched in awe as fallen bricks slowly began to rise back into place and cars roll back and park themselves. The General’s jaw fell open and Marinette was certain she had a similar expression herself. The other Stonehearts also slowly transformed back into their normal selves.

Cat Noir was watching the scene with wide eyes. Marinette tugged on his arm. “Let’s get going.” He stared and nodded at her, and they both jumped down, running towards the familiar streets of Paris.

They stopped after a while, as the bitter night air began to creep up on them. Marinette stopped on the roof of an old movie theater her parents used to take her to on her birthday. She hadn't been there for a few years now.

“How did you get your miraculous?” She asked.

“Just showed up on my table a few days ago. You?”

“I got mine much the same way.”

They were silent for a few more moments, watching the distant sunset. There was a light breeze that night, and Marinette noticed it was less chilly while she was Ladybug. It must be another weird superhero thing.

“My Kwami seems to not trust you.” Cat Noir said.

“Mine has the same sentiment.”

Cat Noir laughed. “I’m not going to listen to him.”

Marinette blinked and looked up in surprise, meeting Cat Noir’s unnatural green eyes. He laughed again and put his hands on his hips.

“You really told off that General guy.”

Marinette flushed with embarrassment. “I’m not entirely sure where that came from. I’m not really like that in my normal life.”

Cat Noir nodded. “I know the feeling.”

They had descended into awkward silence again, and Marinette didn’t really know what to say to break it. The sun was nearly down now, and she needed to get home. Her parents would be waiting.

“Well.” She said. “Next time I need to beat up a stone monster, can I count on you being there?”

Cat Noir smiled. “Of course.” He held out his fist, and Marinette tapped it lightly with her own. He turned around and walked to the edge of the roof. He glanced back at her briefly. “See you around, my lady.” Then he dropped into the alley way below.

Marinette then had a thought that she didn’t want to give this up.

Adrien was looking forward to a hopefully normal day of school this time. He walked up the stairs and into the main room. The general chatter seemed happier this morning, and he noticed Ivan and Mylene chatting quietly at the edge of the room. He smiled and approached them. Ivan looked wary for a few moments and Adrien put his hands up before he spoke.

“I came to apologize for yesterday.” He said. “I only wanted to make sure you were alright after what Chloe said.”

“I thought you two were friends?” Mylene said, Ivan was silent.

“We are.” Adrien sighed. “I’ve known her since I was a kid, but I don’t approve of her behavior. I really am sorry; I should have done something to stop her.”

Mylene laughed, “Stop Chloe? I don’t think that’s possible.” She put a hand on Ivan’s arm. He glanced at it briefly and then turned to Adrien.

“I forgive you.” Ivan smiled.

Adrien nodded and gave his thanks before turning up the stairs to the replacement classroom they had been assigned, since the old one was still under repairs from the incident. Chloe was sitting at the desk already. She looked a bit lost in thought and was fingering her sleeve. He put a hand on her shoulder.

Chloe nearly jumped ten feet into the air and stood immediately. She grabbed her shoulder as though she was protecting it.

“I didn’t mean to startle you!” Adrien said quickly. “Is your shoulder alright? You didn’t get injured, yesterday did you?”

Chloe blushed, and then looked at the ground. She seemed almost… flustered. It wasn’t exactly an expression he was used to seeing on her. She gripped her shoulder tighter. “It’s fine. I’m not injured or anything.” She slowly sat back down, and Adrien took his seat beside her.

He smiled to Nino as he walked into the class, and to Adrien’s surprise, he approached his desk.

“Hey, I was wondering if you want to join me and a few of the guys for a game of basketball at lunch?” He asked. “We’re really not that great, but it’s just for fun, so…”

Adrien smiled. “I’d love to!”

“Great, see you then!” Nino said, and then continued to his seat.

Adrien turned to look at Chloe with an apologetic expression, only to find that she was smiling.

She shook her head when she saw his face. “It’s fine. Go make some new friends.”

Adrien pulled his bag out from underneath his seat and watched as his classmates came one by one through the door, Ivan and Mylene hand in hand. Apparently, things had worked out well for them, and Adrien smiled.

“Alright. It’s time to take roll everyone!” Ms. Bustier called. As soon as she finished, the door flew open with a crash and Adrien turned to find Marinette in the doorway. She was panting hard and he was certain she’d run all the way here.

“Here! I’m here!” She gasped for breath and the rest of the class giggled. Chloe was still surprisingly silent.

Adrien smiled at her as she passed, which she returned with a glare. Ah, right. He had solved things with Ivan, but Marinette didn’t exactly know that.

He pushed his thoughts away from Marinette as class started. It was a new beginning for Adrien, and superhero or not he was going to make his first school year a good one.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The origins episodes are pretty much the same as the show with some minor adjustments. I decided to have Cat Noir have the ability to purify Akumas as well to make him a more balanced partner. I also chose for them to not use their abilities in this episode, since I think there isn't really a need for it every time. I'm not repairing Adrien's relationship with Marinette quite yet, I want to drag it out for a few episodes. I also forgot to mention that Adrien and Marinette are around 16-17 years old in this, rather than 14 as they are in the show. Going forward, I'll be changing a lot of Akumas, particularly for major characters, and will probably have chapters that aren't focused on Akumas at all. Make sure to leave any questions or suggestions in the comments!

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading If I Had Written Miraculous Ladybug. I'll be explaining the changes I make from canon down here in the end notes for those who are curious. Right off the bat, the first thing you'll noticed I've changed is that I've shoved Marinette onto a football/soccer team with Chloé as the captain. This is a far cry from the show, where both of them seem far from athletic. One reason for this is that I wanted to downplay Chloé's rich diva attitude just a bit, but her being the captain still gives her power over Marinette. I also wanted Marinette to have athletic interest's outside of being ladybug, though I haven't erased her interest in fashion design. Girls can like fashion and kick ass on the football field :) I also wanted to be able to force Marinette and Chloé to work as a team sometimes. I am planning on redeeming her in this fic. Adrien remains pretty much the same, but I'm planning on dragging out Marinette's initial hatred of him just a bit. (It won't last very long though) Another major change I made was replacing Master Fu entirely (don't hate me lmao). This was because I thought it would be cool to have the miraculous be passed down directly. Another major change I made was to ladybug's powers, which you'll notice are more similar to Evillistrator's. I made this change because I want Marinette to be more active in her problem solving, rather than have the solution drop into her lap. Plus, it gives her the chance to use her design abilities! That about sums up my major changes in this chapter. Feel free to ask me any questions, or give me suggestions in the chat! See you next chapter!


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